Key-holder for locks.



No. 670,626.- Patented vMar. 26, |90I.

T. s. moan. KEY 'HoLuEn Fon Locus.

(Ap-puntini aledmv'. 2a, 1900.)

(llo Modal.)

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ITED STATES ATENT Enron.9

KEY-HOLDER FOR LOCKS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 670,626, dated March 26, 1901.

Application filed November 22. 1900l Serial No. 37,380. (No model.)

To all whorn/ t may concern:

Beit known that I, TIMOTHY SEARY THORN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Plainfield, in the county of Union and State of N ewJ ersey,have in vented a new and useful Key-Holder for Door-Locks, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to improvements in key-holders for locks.

One object of the present invention is to improve the construction of key-holders for locks and to provide a simple, inexpensive, and efficient device adapted to be readily applied to locks and capable of holding a key out of alinement with the keyhole to prevent it from being jarred out of the door or taken out by small children, so that the key will not become lost.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device of this character adapted to allow sufficient free movement of the key to operate the lock-bolt and capable of permitting the key to readily pass it when the necessary pressure is applied.

The invention consists in theconstruction and novel combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and pointed out in the claims hereto appended.

In the drawings, Figure lis an elevation of a lock, the removable plate or face being de-l tached to show the key-holder. sectional View of the same. perspective view of the resilient holder or spring. Fig. 4 is a similar view of the post for supporting one of the ends of the spring. Fig. 5 is a'detail view illustratingv a slight modification of the invention.

Like numerals of reference designate cor- Fig. 2 is a responding parts in all the figures of the drawings.

l designates an approximately V-shaped spring, designed to be arranged within a lockcasing 2 to form a resilient key-holder to be engaged by a key 3 to prevent the same from swinging to a position in alinelnent with the keyhole 4 of the casing, whereby the key will be effectually prevented from being jarred out of the door or removed by small children.

The key-holder,which is adapted to prevent a key from becoming lost, is composed of inclined upwardly-diverging sides 5 and a short Fig. 3 is a detail connecting portion 6, which rests against the bottom of the lock-casing and which'extends preferably beyond each side of the keyhole, as clearly shown in Figs. l and 5. The sides of the spring or resilient holder are straight and are supported by posts 8 and 9, which may be arranged as illustrated in Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings or as shown in Fig. 5. The sides 5 of the key-holder are arranged to be flexed by the key in turning the same to carry its bolt-engaging portion upward to operate the bolt, as the distance betweenthe enlarged portion of the keyhole and the sides of the spring is less than the length of the engaging portion of the key.

The keyholder is designed to be made ofa sufficient strength to resist the efforts of young children to turn the key; but the latter may be readily moved past the spring when the necessary pressure is applied.

The post 8, which is arranged at the lefthand side of the spring in Fig. l of the drawings, is provided with an approximately V- shaped recess l0 to receive the adjacent end of the spring, and the other end of the spring is arranged in a recess formed by the post 9 and the adjacent wall of the lock-casing.

In' Fig. 5 of the accompanying drawings the post 1l, which supports the bolt, is utilized for holding the spring or holder, and a supplemental post l2 is arranged adjacent to the post ll to form the tapering or V-shaped recess for the reception of the spring or holder. The other end of the spring is arranged within a recess formed by a post 9a andthe adjacent wall of the casing. The post 9a is constructed like the post 9, heretofore described. The spring is firmly held in proper position by the post-s and the casing of the lock, and it will eectually prevent a key from being accidentally lost out of a door.

It will be seen that the key-holder is exceedingly simple and inexpensive in construction, that it is adapted to be readily applied to a lock and is not liable to become broken or to get out of order, and that it is capable 0f effectually preventing'a key from being jarred out of the door or taken therefrom by roo young children. It will also be apparent that the post 8, which supports the left-hand side of the key-holder in Fig. l of the accompanying drawings, performs a double function in that it is recessed to receive the adjacent end of the holderand is located at the lower edge of the bolt and is adapted to support the same and limit the movement thereof.

The posts for supporting the ends of the holder are designed to be cast integral with the lock-casing, but they may be formed in any other manner, and I desire it to be understood that various changes Within the scope ofthe appended claims may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention.

Vhat I claim isl. The combination with a lock, of a resilient key-holder arranged within the lock and provided with sides located at opposite sides of the keyhole and extending upward from the bottom of the latter and arranged to receive a key between them to limit the movement of the key and adapted to be flexed by the same, substantially as described.

2. The combination with a lock, of an approximately V-shaped spring forming a keyholder and composed of diver-ging sides located at opposite sides of the keyhole and extending upward from the bottom of the latter and receiving a key between them, and a straight connecting portion arranged at the bottom of the keyhole, and post supporting the spring, substantially as described.

3. The combination with a lock, of an approximately V-shaped spring forming a resilient key-holder and arranged at the keyhole ol the casing in position to receive akey between its sides, and the posts supporting the ends of the spring, one of the posts being provided with a taperingrecess, substantially as described.

4. The combination with a lock having a sliding bolt, of an approximately V-shaped spring forming a resilient key-holder and arranged at the keyhole in position to receive the key between its sides, the post S snp porting the bolt ot' thelock and provided with a recess receiving the adjacent end of the keyholder, and means for supporting the other end of the holder7 substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

TIMOTH Y' SEARY 'l HORN.

Vitnesses:

F. E. WHITEsIDE, H. HANSEN. 

